Los Angeles, California -- November 13, 1998 -- On Wednesday, November 18 and Thursday, November 19, The Edmund G. "Pat" Brown Institute for Public Affairs at California State University, Los Angeles will address "Conflict, Change & Continuity: Political and Policy Implications of the 1998 Election Results for California's Diverse Communities" at its sixth annual California Policy Issues Conference in two all-day sessions at the Omni Hotel, downtown Los Angeles.

Prominent political analysts, campaign strategists, elected officials, corporate and labor leaders, community activists and non-profit organization leaders will offer presentations and panel discussions on an array of issues affected by the election results.

Topics to be covered include implications of shifting social and voter demographics, changing inter-racial political dynamics, emerging electoral coalitions for the new millennium, the outlook for two-party inclusion in California, the difficulties of holding elective office in California, and implications of the elections for business and labor in the golden state.

"We are thrilled by the wide diversity and quality of those coming together for this event. Our objective is to foster insightful discussion, generate critical information flows, and enhance understanding of the most significant political issues and policy implications resulting from the 1998 elections," said Jaime A. Regalado, political scientist and executive director of the Pat Brown Institute.

Opening keynote for the two-day conference will be delivered by Bruce Cain, associate director and professor of the Institute of Governmental Studies at UC Berkeley, followed by morning and afternoon panels featuring office-holders, scholars, community leaders and election professionals. California Attorney General-elect Bill Lockyer will be delivering the luncheon keynote address on the first day. The second day luncheon keynoter will be noted Korean American Bar Association leader Angela Oh, most recently an advisory board member of the President's Initiative on Race.

The Edmund G. "Pat" Brown Institute for Public Affairs at Cal State L.A. is a nonprofit, non-partisan center for community education, applied public policy research, youth violence prevention/diversion and student internship opportunity, located on the Cal State L.A. campus.

Conference Keynote Speaker:
Bruce E. Cain is associate director of the Institute of Governmental Studies in the Department of Political Science at California Institute of Technology, where he taught from 1976 to 1989 in the fields of California politics, political theory, and comparative government. He was appointed Robson Professor of Political Science in 1995. A summa cum laude graduate at Bowdoin College, he studied as a Rhodes Scholar at Trinity College, Oxford. In 1976, he received his Ph.D. in political science from Harvard University. His writings include The Reapportionment Puzzle (1984), a landmark study of California reapportionment; The Personal Vote (1987), written with John Ferejohn and Morris-Fiorina, which discusses news trends in legislative representation in Britain and American and explores their electoral consequences; and Congressional Redistricting (1991), with David Butler, which is an overview of politics and procedures of Congressional redistricting in the United States. He has also edited two books, Developments in American Politics, volumes 1 and 2, with Gillian Peele. He has served as polling consultant for state senate races to Fairbank, Canapary and Maulin; redistricting consultant to the Los Angeles City Council and the Attorney General of the State of Massachusetts; consultant to the Los Angeles Times; and commentator for numerous radio and television stations in Los Angeles and the Bay Area.

Day One Luncheon Keynote Speaker:
Bill Lockyer was elected California's Attorney General on Nov. 4, 1998. His campaign emphasized strong enforcement of the assault weapons ban, improved school safety, environmental and civil rights protection, improved child support collection as well as effective juvenile justice enforcement and prevention. He will be worn in as Attorney General on Jan. 4, 1999. Senator Lockyer served as president pro tempore of the California State Senate from 1994 until Feb. 1998, when he stepped down in order to run for Attorney General. As president pro tem, Lockyer was in charge of maintaining a Democratic majority in the House, and he chaired the Senate Rules Committee that reviews the Governor's appointees and manages Senate operations. First elected to State Assembly in 1973, Lockyer was elected to the Senate in 1982 by the communities of Hayward, Castro Valley, Newark, San Leandro, San Lorenzo, Sunol, Union City, Milpitas, Fremont, Pleasanton, San Jose and Santa Clara.

Day Two Luncheon Keynote Speaker:
Angela Oh recently left a private law practice after spending 11 years working as a trial attorney, primarily representing individuals and organizations in state and federal criminal matters. Until July 1998, Oh was a partner at Beck, De Corso, Daly, Barrera & Oh. She currently serves as chairperson of the Board of Directors for the Korean American Family Service Center in Los Angeles, advisory board member to HUD Secretary Andrew Cuomo's Community Builder Fellowship Program, member of the Board of Directors of the Western Justice Center Foundation, and member of the Board of Directors of Lawyers Mutual Insurance Company. In June 1997, President Clinton appointed Oh to serve on a seven-member advisory board to the President's Initiative on Race. Oh has also been a leading member of the legal profession, having served as a lawyer delegate to the Ninth Circuit Judicial Conference in 1994 through 1997, chairperson and member of the U.S. Senator Barbara Boxer's Federal Appointments Committee in 1993 through 1995, president of the Korean American Bar Association of Southern California in 1993, board member of the California Women's Law Center between 1991 through 1997, and a founding member of the Multicultural Bar Alliance in 1991. Oh received her Juris Doctor from King Hall at the University of California, Davis, in 1986. She is the 1996 recipient of the Distinguished Alumni Award. Oh earned her Master of Public Health in 1981 and her Bachelor of Arts in 1977 at the University of California, Los Angeles.

Day Two: Thu., Nov. 198:35 a.m.
"Holding Elective Office in California: The Storms of Transition"10:15 a.m.
"Election Implications for Business and Labor in California" and
"Partnering with the Community: The Promise and the Peril"12 noon
Luncheon keynote: "Race and Politics 2000: Lessons of Elections '98?"

For a complete program with names of panelists and speakers,
call the Cal State L.A. Public Affairs Office at (323) 343-3050.